Vanessa Poulson

I’ve always had somewhat of a fascination with the Roman city of Pompeii. I remember learning about it for the first time back in first or second grade and wanting so badly to understand how it was that a city could be entirely destroyed and forgotten about and then reborn through modern science, technology, and the ability to find something beautiful in a place where tragedy had struck.

It’s hard to imagine something like Pompeii being anything more than a tragedy. Thousands of people lost t...

Fernanda Marroquin won’t slow down for anyone. Between her work with both a climate nonprofit and undocumented youth, Fernanda’s plate is pretty full.
Things have always been this way for Fernanda. Since completing the Penn LPS Coding Boot Camp, though, she’s found a new way to spend her time—and help those around her.
Growing up in a world of uncertainty
Life has been hectic for Fernanda for as long as she can remember, all the way back to her childhood. As an 11-year-old, she entered the Un...

Hot take, not all copy is made equal, especially in a modern world of social media. With the rise in internet culture, a new sub-genre (if I may) of copywriting has sprung from the likes of Instagram and YouTube: influencer copy.
While we’ve covered this topic before, if you’re unaware what an influencer is, here’s the rundown. Influencers are people on social media that have a significant following of people. This following can range a thousand people to well over 1 million+ followers. They ...

Staying innovative in your photography can be a challenge for even the most experienced creatives. To stay ahead on social media, maintaining a creative presence is an important step to building an audience and creating projects that stand out in the sea of online content. One way to up the intrigue on your feed: post some eye-catching double exposure photography!
Even if you don't know the first thing about double exposure photography, it's easy to create with BeFunky. You don’t even need an...

Photo by Sage McAvoy for Refinery29.
In the past few weeks, a variety of states across the U.S. have unveiled new laws that restrict women’s access to abortions. Georgia governor Brian Kemp signed into law the state's so-called "heartbeat bill," an effective ban on abortions more than six weeks into a pregnancy, and Alabama governor Kay Ivey signed the state's controversial near-total abortion ban Wednesday evening. Draconian new anti-abortion measures have also won wide margins of approval i...

By Vanessa
If you’ve been living anywhere other than under a rock, you know that video content has been on the rise on both Instagram and Facebook for the past few years. With the recent appearance of platforms like Tik Tok, quick and engaging video content is more important than ever.
Don’t just take our word for it; According to HubSpot, here are some of the top reasons you should be utilizing video content on your social media platforms.
Adding a video to marketing emails can boost click-t...

Abortion has been a difficult subject long before the Roe v. Wade decision in 1973, particularly so in the American South. In a region where Republican and religious values rule, often more so than legal regulation, getting an abortion has become increasingly difficult in these southern states, despite the procedure being entirely legal nationwide. If Roe v. Wade were overturned, abortion would automatically become illegal in four states: Louisiana, South Dakota, North Dakota, and Mississippi...

Penn LPS Coding Boot Camp instructor Quincy Iheme never expected his boot camp participants to give him a pair of tickets for the New York Giants against the Philadelphia Eagles for his birthday.
“Most of the class were Eagles fans,” said Quincy. “The fact that they got a gift like that took a lot of thought and coordination between the students. During class, I often made jokes at the Eagles’ expense, and I know how difficult it must have been for them to buy tickets for a Giants fan!”
The s...

I’m greeted at the door by the sight of a beautiful blonde woman with both her small breasts out, pulling a see-through ivory dress over the visible bones of her chest. A stylist asks her to turn around so she can cinch the fabric tight around her narrow waist.

“I don’t like the way your chest looks in this,” the stylist frowns. The blonde’s face falters.

“Okay,” she breathes and bends her threadlike limbs behind her back to untie the belt around her waist. I fear that she’s going to split in...

The word “advent,” as defined in the dictionary, means the “arrival of a notable person, thing or event.” Florida Hospital’s coming transformation to AdventHealth, a new national, consumer-centric brand based in Central Florida, is set to be no different.
“Florida Hospital was built on a strong foundation, but it’s time we turn from the past and take a leap into the future,” said Florida Hospital president and CEO Daryl Tol. “We’re creating a health care system that’s easier to navigate, simp...

I’ve always had really vivid past memories of Valentine’s Day. For example, I could tell you about the time that my crush in the first grade gave chocolate to the girl that used to draw awful pictures of me and pull my hair every day instead of me. Or, I could talk about the bus ride home on that fateful February 14 in seventh grade where a boy I didn’t even know gave me a stuffed teddy bear and walked off the bus, and I never saw him again. I could tell you about what it feels like to be in ...

CW: The following piece contains descriptions of animal abuse.

In 27 states across the United States, it is illegal or unlawful to gives away animals as prizes. This includes giving them away by the side of the road, dying the animals artificial colors before giving them away, and offering them as prizes at fairs or carnivals. On this list of states that prohibit these kinds of behaviors is Alabama, where I currently reside, and where just last weekend I witnessed bunnies being offered as pri...

With the recent release of both Netflix and Hulu documentaries about the notorious Fyre Festival, the highs and lows of an experience sold via social media and bought by celebrity-worshippers and social media influencers have been pushed back into the public eye once again.
Need a recap? Fyre Festival was a luxury music festival that was supposed to take place on the Bahamian island of Great Exuma over two weekends in April and May of 2017. Attendees were to stay in luxury tents and be served...